WASHINGTON, MO – Jeremiah Neal is a prolific scorer.
The 6-foot-2 senior, who leads St. Dominic in points per game, can make shots near the basket, behind the three-point arc and everywhere in between.
But on Wednesday, when Pattonville took away his room to shoot, Neal displayed another aspect of his all-around game.
“My main job is to get downhill and create plays, not necessarily always scoring,” Neal said. “I just take what the defense gives me. Today they collapsed and our shooters were open.”
Neal racked up eight assists, Ray Butler and Jack Roppa scored 15 points and St. Dominic continued its outstanding play in a 62-39 victory over Pattonville during a semifinal matchup at the 53rd Annual Washington High School basketball Tournament.
St. Dominic (10-3), which won for the eighth game in the last nine games, will face Borgia (14-0) for the Washington Tournament title at 7 p.m. Friday in Blue Jay Gym.
Borgia defeated St. Charles 60-49 in the other semifinal.
Neal, who averages 18 points per game, attempted only five shots on Wednesday but his effect on the offense was just as impactful. Three times during the first quarter Neal drove into the paint, drew defenders and found open shooters.
Freshman Austin Ryan and seniors Brayden Gardner and Jack Roppa drained triples off feeds from Neal as St. Dominic opened a 22-12 lead after one quarter.
Roppa was the beneficiary of three kick-out passes from Neal and scored 13 of his 15 points in the first half.
“Jeremiah is always attacking downhill and looking for shooters in the corners. Today, he found me a few times,” Roppa said. “It felt good.”
The defensive prowess of the Crusaders was equally impressive. St. Dominic alternated between a 2-3 and a 1-3-1 zone look with Neal looming on the back line.
When the highly-pressured Pattonville guards attempted passes, Neal was lurking. He led the Crusaders with four steals as St. Dominic quickly turned defense into offense.
“When we play our defense, we’re all about pressure. Even though we’re in a 2-3 (zone) we don’t sit back. We get up and make people uncomfortable,” Neal said. “That’s really what we hang our hats on – our defensive pride.”
Neal opened the second quarter with a steal and a coast-to-coast layup that produced his first field goal and a three-point play. Another back line steal led to a drive and dish to Roppa behind the arc and a 16-point lead for the Crusaders.
“(Jeremiah) has a unique ability to get by anybody,” St. Dominic coach Kevin Roberts said. “He can get downhill, he can get to the basket and when they collapse on him, he has high basketball IQ and makes the right decision.”
And the St. Dominic shooters are ready and able.
The Crusaders drained 11 three-pointers, eight during the first half to build a comfortable lead. Roppa, Butler and Gardner each hit three triples and combined to go 9-for-19 from long range.
“We have guys who have worked really hard to shoot the basketball well, especially from three-point range and tonight it showed,” Roberts said.
Pattonville (5-7) used strong offensive rebounding, led by senior Rashad Smith, and end-of-quarter excellence to stay within striking distance.
A length-of-court drive by sophomore Jackson Powell beat the halftime buzzer and a half-court bank shot by sophomore Danny Winston closed out the third quarter.
But when St. Dominic needed to make plays to close out the game, the Crusaders looked to Neal. He drained a three-pointer to open the fourth quarter, then found a streaking Butler along the baseline for his eighth assist.
Butler repaid the favor on the next possession with a slick assist to a cutting Neal.
“We always look out for each other,” Butler said. “He’ll give it up, and the next time, I’ll give it up to him. That’s just how we work.”
And the way the Crusaders work – unselfish offense coupled with smothering defense – has them peaking at a perfect time as they prepare to face an undefeated Borgia team with a tournament championship on the line on Friday.
“These guys are driven. In the locker room, it’s all business. There wasn’t a lot of cheering because that’s not why we’re here. We’re here to win the championship,” Roberts said.
Butler added, “We’re ready for it. The job is not finished. We’ve got a lot more to prove.”